Urban Forest VIP Weekly Contest
Learn a new Very Important Plant (VIP) every week of the Environmental Extravaganza and be entered to win prizes.
Urban Forest VIPs
Thank you for discovering Surrey’s Very Important Plants (VIPs) with us this spring. All participants will receive a prize in the mail and grand prize winners will be contacted.
Keep exploring nature on your own using our Urban Forest Bingo and Park Crawls!
Weekly VIPs
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Week 1 VIP: Osoberry
Osoberry is very important because the green-white blossoms are the first sign of spring in the urban forest!
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Week 2 VIP: Salmonberry
Salmonberry is very important because they are one of the earliest flowers to bloom in the spring, then one of the earliest berries to ripen shortly afterwards.
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Week 3 VIP: Bigleaf Maple
Bigleaf maple is very important as a wildlife tree with many insects, birds and mammals feeding on its seeds, flower nectar, leaves and branches.
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Week 4 VIP: Douglas-fir
Douglas-fir is very important because its seeds provide food for mammals and birds. It is also long-lived and its wood is one of the most valuable sources of lumber.
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Week 5 VIP: Snowberry
Snowberry is very important because they are an important food source for birds like robins and small mammals such as deer mice, especially in the winter.
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Week 6 VIP: Thimbleberry
Thimbleberry is very important for wildlife. The flowers are pollinated by insects in late spring, and the berries are a summer food for birds including jays, robins, towhees, sparrows, as well as mammals such as coyotes, and squirrels.
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Week 7: Nootka Rose
Nootka rose is very important for wildlife. Squirrels, mice and coyotes eat the fruit or "hips", and deer eat the roses. Deer enjoy the roses so much that they are nicknamed “deer candy”.
